Inbound marketing, it ain’t easy. It takes a ton of hard work, effort, time and your fingers aren’t gonna thank you. This is our first post, and we know we’ve got a long road ahead of us.

So, why do companies bother marketing inbound and creating a blog? What’s the point? Why inbound marketing?

The main reason is that inbound marketing helps potential customers. People gain something from your content - knowledge, something far more valuable than any advert. Whilst they may or may not sign up, you’re far more likely to stick in their minds.

I’ve taken a look at hundreds of Startup blogs and chosen my favourite based on their charm, content and usefulness. Read ahead to see why I’ve chosen them and how they can help you. See why they choose to focus on their inbound marketing.

Crew

Crew is a website that helps get your app, website, branding or print design from concept to reality. One unique thing about this company though, is its Labs & Blog.

Crew Labs have crafted fantastic resources, with one of it’s most well known being Unsplash. It’s popular because it helps designers and writers find quality images for free, whilst also helping photographers gain exposure.

Their inbound marketing blog is no less useful, with the team constantly pushing content (and their boundaries) to help business starters & writers improve their own work. They’ve got an entire blog for insights into how to build an online business.

I’ve learned so much from the team, and I think they’ve done a wonderful at keeping their company, labs & blog tasteful.

##Intercom You’ve more than likely heard of Intercom, or at least used their product once. They’re an onboarding/live chat app, and they’re growing fast having just secured a Series C.

What does that mean for their inbound marketing blog though? Well, it means they release a ton of interesting data, insights about design and tips about SaaS. They’ve also released a few eBooks, jam-packed full of knowledge for product management & support teams.

If you’re a SaaS and you’re looking to gain customers through marketing inbound, Inside Intercom is a prime example of how to pull it off with style.

Groove

Maintained by Len & Alex, the Groove Blog has been a popular choice for startups looking to improve their customer support.

The honest, story lead blog posts from the team let you see inside the heart of the company, and it’s inspiring. You see their struggles, their failures and the brutal truth about leading a startup.

You always come away having learnt something from their blog. A great feature of the blog is the Q&A every Friday, where Alex, the founder answers some of the readers comments.

If you’re looking to improve your customer support, or want examples of how to create a story within a post, the Groove Blog is a great read.

Customer.io

Let’s face it, email ain’t a sexy topic. It’s tough to make it interesting not only for the author but for the reader too. Despite this, Customer.io have created an amazing blog around the topic.

With a mix of psychology and email tips, their inbound marketing blog showcases some of the best data-driven research for improving emails. To prove their methods, they showcase a load of email examples from a variety of companies.

People don’t want to read about email all day long, and they know this. They tend to keep their content short, to the point and they make sure you take something useful away.

If you’re struggling to take hold of your email sequences, or need to improve metrics, the Customer.io blog is an awesome read.

Ghost

A blog, by a blogging platform. It makes sense.

The Ghost blog is full of helpful hints, data, examples and insights. They strive to uncover the curtain on how the top inbound authors’ work, and how you can do the same.

They’re unapologetically honest about themselves too. Every month, the team publish data about what went well and not so well, something you don’t find in many places.

You can tell they care about making your own blog better, and they’re always up for a discussion on their comments.

If you’re a inbound marketer losing the will to write, check out the Ghost Blog. It’ll inspire you to improve your process and analyse you and your team’s effort.

Buffer

Social media is tough to get a grasp on, particularly when you’re just starting out. Luckily, Buffer are on hand to help you through your woes.

Their blog features long-form insights, usually data driven, along with useful resources and infographics. They’re easy to digest and I always find myself trying out their methods.

With guest posts from experts, email courses and an open culture, it’s easy to see why their blog is one of the best for social media.

Over the next year, we’ll be showing you how to start your blog, write awesome posts, target the right audience and how to leverage SEO.

We’ll also be sharing data-driven methods, our favourite tools and what we’re reading this month. We can’t wait to help you out, and we hope to see you around.